SYDNEY July 23 ( Xinhua) -- Women are less likely than men to receive vital treatment for heart attacks and subsequently twice as likely to die, according to a study of 41 Australian hospitals released on Monday.
Researchers from the University of Sydney found that of the 715 women and 2,183 men surveyed who presented to hospital with ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (heart attack) symptoms, six months after being discharged the women were twice as likely to experience serious adverse cardiovascular events or death.
"The reasons for the under-treatment and management of women compared to men in Australian hospitals aren't clear," study senior author Prof. Clara Chow from the University of Sydney and Cardiologist at Westmead Hospital said.
"It might be due to poor awareness that women with [heart attacks] are generally at higher risk, or by a preference for subjectively assessing risk rather than applying more reliable, objective risk prediction tools."
While previous studies have been unable to adjust for factors that could affect the accuracy of outcomes, Chow and team said they are confident that they accounted for scenarios influencing treatment and health outcomes.
Chow said that the study focused on patients with heart attacks because the clinical presentation and diagnosis is relatively consistent and should follow a standardised management plan, making it difficult to account for their results.
"Whatever the cause, these differences aren't justified," Chow said.
"We need to do more research to discover why women suffering serious heart attacks are being under-investigated by health services and urgently identify ways to redress the disparity in treatment and health outcomes."
